Systems and methods for downloading configuration data to fire alarm control panel devices and peripheral devices in a fire alarm system

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for downloading configuration data to control panel devices and peripheral devices in a connected system are provided. Some methods can include a master device in the connected system receiving and implementing a change to configuration data of the master device, the master device identifying the change to the configuration data of the master device, and the master device broadcasting a configuration message to a plurality of slave devices of the master device, wherein the configuration message can include the change to the configuration data of the master device.

PRIORITY INFORMATION

This application is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/671,366, filed Aug. 8, 2017, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,242,553, issuedMar. 26, 2019, the contents of which are incorporated herein byreference.

FIELD

The present invention relates to fire alarm control panel devices andperipheral devices in a fire alarm system. More particularly, thepresent invention relates to systems and methods for downloadingconfiguration data to the fire alarm control panel devices and theperipheral devices in the fire alarm system.

BACKGROUND

One of the most time consuming parts of commissioning a fire alarmsystem is downloading configuration data to fire alarm control paneldevices and peripheral devices in the fire alarm system. Furthermore,due to a number of reasons, such as misunderstanding requirements, lackof knowledge of a site, owner recommendations, and the like, in largefire alarm systems with many fire alarm control panel devices andperipheral devices, it is common for there to be changes to theconfiguration data, such as panel settings and device settings, afterthe fire alarm system is commissioned. In these situations, a siteengineer must be deployed onsite to update the configuration data ineach of the fire alarm control panel devices and the peripheral deviceson a one by one basis. However, this is a repetitive task that is proneto errors and that is costly due to the time intensive nature of thetask.

In view of the above, there is a continuing, ongoing need for improvedsystems and methods.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system in accordance with disclosedembodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

While this invention is susceptible of an embodiment in many differentforms, there are shown in the drawings and will be described herein indetail specific embodiments thereof with the understanding that thepresent disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of theprinciples of the invention. It is not intended to limit the inventionto the specific illustrated embodiments.

Embodiments disclosed herein can include systems and methods fordownloading configuration data to fire alarm control panel devices andperipheral devices in a fire alarm system. While systems and methodsdisclosed herein are described in connection with a fire alarm system,it is to be understood that systems and methods disclosed herein are notso limited. Instead, systems and methods disclosed herein could be usedin connection with a gas detection system, an access control system, asecurity system, or any connected system with internet of things (loT)devices.

In accordance with disclosed embodiments, all of the fire alarm controlpanel devices and the peripheral devices in the fire alarm system can begrouped into a master slave relationship. In this regard, a first firealarm control panel device can be a master device for one or more slavedevices, including one or more other fire alarm control panel devicesand/or one or more peripheral devices. Furthermore, a first slave devicecan be the master device for one or more other slave devices. When achange is made to the configuration data in one master device, thechange can be made known to each of the slave devices of that masterdevice. That is, the fire alarm control panel devices and the peripheraldevices in the fire alarm system can be organized in a cascade, and theconfiguration data can be cloned or replicated from the master device toeach of the slave devices through the cascade.

In some embodiments, each of the master devices in the fire alarm systemcan identify when a change has been made to the configuration data of arespective one of the master devices. Responsive thereto, the respectiveone of the master devices can transmit or distribute the configurationdata with the change or transmit or distribute only the change to theconfiguration data to all of the slave devices of the respective one ofthe master devices. For example, the respective one of the masterdevices can broadcast a configuration message over a wired or wirelessnetwork connecting the fire alarm system, the configuration message caninclude the configuration data with the change or only the change to theconfiguration data, and each of the slave devices of the respective oneof the master devices can receive the configuration message and updatethe configuration data of a respective one of the slave devicesaccordingly.

In some embodiments, the network connecting the fire alarm system caninclude a cloud network, and a user can update the configuration data ofthe respective one of the master devices via the cloud network. In theseembodiments, when the respective one of the master devices identifiesthe change to the configuration data of the respective one of the masterdevices, the respective one of the master devices can push theconfiguration message via the cloud network to each of the slave devicesof the respective one of the master devices. In some embodiments, a siteengineer can be onsite to authenticate the change to the configurationdata before the configuration message is pushed to each of the slavedevices.

In some embodiments, the user can update the respective one of themaster devices via a USB device inserted into a respective USB port therespective one of the master devices, and the USB device can include thechange to the configuration data. In these embodiments, the respectiveone of the master devices can read the change to the configuration datafrom the USB device and use the change to the configuration data toupdate itself and broadcast the configuration message as disclosedherein.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system 100 in accordance with disclosedembodiments. As seen in FIG. 1, the system 100 can include the firealarm control panel device M1 that can be the master device of threesalve devices, including the peripheral device M2 and each of the firealarm control panel devices S1, S2. Similarly, the peripheral device M2can be the master device of two slave devices, including each of theperipheral devices S3, S4. The fire alarm control panel device S1 can bethe master device of one slave device, including the peripheral deviceM3, and the peripheral device M3 can be the master device of three slavedevices, including the peripheral devices S5, S6, S7. Finally, the firealarm control panel device S2 can be the master device of one slavedevice, including the peripheral device M4, and the peripheral device M4can be the master device of three slave devices, including theperipheral devices S8, S9, S10.

As seen in FIG. 1, in some embodiments, the fire alarm control paneldevices M1, S1, S2 and the peripheral devices M2, M3, M4, S3, S4, S5,S6, S7, S8, S9, S10 in the fire alarm system 100 can be organized in acascade. As further seen in FIG. 1, in some embodiments, the masterslave relationship in the fire alarm system 100 can be 1:1 or 1:many,and the system 100 can include a plurality of master devices.

A user can update the configuration data of the fire alarm control paneldevice M1 as disclosed herein or as would be understood by one orordinary skill in the art. Responsive thereto and in accordance withdisclosed embodiments, the fire alarm control panel device M1 canidentify a change to the configuration data of the fire alarm controlpanel device M1 and transmit, distribute, broadcast, or push theconfiguration message that includes the configuration data with thechange or that includes only the change to the configuration data to theslave devices of the fire alarm control panel device M1, including theperipheral device M2 and each of the fire alarm control panel devicesS1, S2. Similarly, upon receiving the configuration message, theperipheral device M2 can use the configuration message to update itsconfiguration data and transmit, distribute, broadcast, or push theconfiguration message to the slave devices of the peripheral device M2,including the peripheral devices S3, S4. Upon receiving theconfiguration message, the fire alarm control panel device S1 can usethe configuration message to update its configuration data and transmit,distribute, broadcast, or push the configuration message to the slavedevice of the fire alarm control panel device S1, including theperipheral device M3, which, in turn, can use the configuration messageto update its configuration data and transmit, distribute, broadcast, orpush the configuration message to the slave devices of the peripheraldevice M3, including the peripheral devices S5, S6, S7. Finally, uponreceiving the configuration message, the fire alarm control panel deviceS2 can use the configuration message to update its configuration dataand transmit, distribute, broadcast, or push the configuration messageto the slave device of the fire alarm control panel device S2, includingthe peripheral device M4, which, in turn, can use the configurationmessage to update its configuration data and transmit, distribute,broadcast, or push the configuration message to the slave devices of theperipheral device M4, including the peripheral devices S8, S9, S10.

In some embodiments, the configuration message can include the change tothe configuration data of less than all of the fire alarm control paneldevices M1, S1, S2 and the peripheral devices M2, M3, M4, S3, S4, S5,S6, S7, S8, S9, S10 in the fire alarm system 100. For example, in someembodiments, the user can provide the configuration message to the firealarm control panel device M1, but the configuration message may includethe change to the configuration data of only the peripheral devices M2,M3, M4, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8, S9, S10 and not the fire alarm controlpanel devices M1, S1, S2. In these embodiments, the fire alarm controlpanel device M1 can identify the configuration message or identify thechange to the configuration data in the configuration message andtransmit, distribute, broadcast, or push the configuration message tothe slave devices of the fire alarm control panel device M1 withoutupdating its own configuration data.

As seen in FIG. 1, in any embodiment, responsive to the user providingthe configuration message to the one fire alarm control panel device M1,systems and methods disclosed herein can download and cascade theconfiguration message to all of the fire alarm control panel devices M1,S1, S2 and the peripheral devices M2, M3, M4, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8,S9, S10 in the fire alarm system 100 that need the configuration messageto update their configuration data, thereby saving and avoiding the timethat would be needed to update each of the fire alarm control paneldevices M1, S1, S2 and the peripheral devices M2, M3, M4, S3, S4, S5,S6, S7, S8, S9, S10 in the fire alarm system 100 on a one by one basis.

In some embodiments, systems and methods disclosed herein can providethe user with an audible or visual notification message that identifieswhich of the fire alarm control panel devices M1, S1, S2 and theperipheral devices M2, M3, M4, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8, S9, S10 in thefire alarm system 100 updated their configuration data responsive to theconfiguration message.

It is to be understood that each of the fire alarm control panel devicesM1, S1, S2 and the peripheral devices M2, M3, M4, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7,S8, S9, S10 in the fire alarm system 100 can include a respectivetransceiver device, a respective memory device, and a respective userinterface device, each of which can be in communication with respectivecontrol circuitry, a respective programmable processor, and respectiveexecutable control software as would be understood by one of ordinaryskill in the art. The respective executable control software can bestored on a transitory or non-transitory computer readable medium,including, but not limited to local computer memory, RAM, opticalstorage media, magnetic storage media, flash memory, and the like.

In some embodiments, the respective transceiver of a respective one ofthe fire alarm control panel devices M1, S1, S2 and the peripheraldevices M2, M3, M4, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8, S9, S10 can communicate withthe respective transceiver of other ones of the fire alarm control paneldevices M1, S1, S2 and the peripheral devices M2, M3, M4, S3, S4, S5,S6, S7, S8, S9, S10 via the wired or wireless network connecting thesystem 100. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the respective memorydevice can store the configuration data of the respective one of thefire alarm control panel devices M1, S1, S2 and the peripheral devicesM2, M3, M4, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8, S9, S10. Further still, in someembodiments, some or all of the respective control circuitry, therespective programmable processor, and the respective executable controlsoftware can execute and control at least some of the methods disclosedherein.

Although a few embodiments have been described in detail above, othermodifications are possible. For example, the logic flows described abovedo not require the particular order described or sequential order toachieve desirable results. Other steps may be provided, steps may beeliminated from the described flows, and other components may be addedto or removed from the described systems. Other embodiments may bewithin the scope of the invention.

From the foregoing, it will be observed that numerous variations andmodifications may be effected without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention. It is to be understood that no limitation withrespect to the specific system or method described herein is intended orshould be inferred. It is, of course, intended to cover all suchmodifications as fall within the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: a master device in aconnected system receiving an update to first configuration data of theconnected system; the master device determining that the update to thefirst configuration data includes a first change to second configurationdata of the master device; the master device updating the secondconfiguration data to reflect the first change to the secondconfiguration data; the master device identifying a portion of theupdate to the first configuration data relevant to a first plurality ofslave devices in the connected system; the master device communicating aconfiguration message to each of the first plurality of slave devices,the configuration message including the identified relevant portion ofthe update to the first configuration data; a first one of the firstplurality of slave devices receiving the configuration message andresponsive thereto, determining that the identified relevant portion ofthe update to the first configuration data includes a second change tothird configuration data of the first one of the first plurality ofslave devices; and the first one of the first plurality of slave devicesupdating the third configuration data to reflect the second change tothe third configuration data.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein theconnected system includes one of a fire alarm system, a gas detectionsystem, an access control system, a security system, or a plurality ofIoT devices.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the master deviceincludes a control panel device, and wherein each of the first pluralityof slave devices includes a peripheral device.
 4. The method of claim 2,wherein the master device includes a first control panel device, andwherein at least one of the first plurality of slave devices includes asecond control panel device.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein themethod includes the first one of the first plurality of slave devicescommunicating the configuration message to a second plurality of slavedevices in the connected system, the second plurality of slave devicesbeing slaves of the first one of the first plurality of slave devices.6. The method of claim 1, wherein the method includes the master devicereceiving the update to the first configuration data of the connectedsystem via a network.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the methodincludes the master device communicating the configuration message bypushing the configuration message to each of the first plurality ofslave devices via the network.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein themethod includes the master device reading the update to the firstconfiguration data from a USB device inserted into a USB port of themaster device.
 9. The method of claim 1, further comprising a userinterface device emitting an audible or visual notification message thatidentifies which of the master device and the first plurality of slavedevices are updated in response to the master device receiving theupdate to the first configuration data.
 10. The method of claim 1,wherein the method includes cascading the configuration message from themaster device to each of the first plurality of slave devices.
 11. Aconnected system comprising: a master device; and a first plurality ofslave devices that are slave devices of the master device, wherein themaster device is configured to: receive an update to first configurationdata of the connected system; determine that the update to the firstconfiguration data includes a first change to second configuration dataof the master device; update the second configuration data to reflectthe first change to the second configuration data; and identify portionsof the update to the first configuration data that are relevant to thefirst plurality of slave devices and communicate a configuration messageto the first plurality of slave devices, wherein the configurationmessage includes only the portions of the update to the firstconfiguration data that are relevant to the first plurality of slavedevices; and wherein a first one of the first plurality of slave devicesis configured to receive the configuration message and determine whetherthe portions of the update to the first configuration data include asecond change to third configuration data of the first one of the firstplurality of slave devices, and when the portions of the update to thefirst configuration data include the second change to the thirdconfiguration data, update the third configuration data to reflect thesecond change to the third configuration data.
 12. The system of claim11, wherein the system is one of a fire alarm system, a gas detectionsystem, an access control system, a security system, and a plurality ofloT devices.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the master devicecomprises a control panel device, and wherein each of the firstplurality of slave devices comprises a peripheral device.
 14. The systemof claim 12, wherein the master device comprises a first control paneldevice, and wherein at least one of the first plurality of slave devicescomprises a second control panel device.
 15. The system of claim 11,wherein the master device is configured to receive the update to thefirst configuration data via a cloud network.
 16. The system of claim15, wherein the master device is configured to broadcast theconfiguration message by pushing the configuration message to each ofthe first plurality of slave devices via the cloud network.
 17. Thesystem of claim 11, wherein the master device is configured to read theupdate to the first configuration data from a USB device inserted into aUSB port of the master device.
 18. The system of claim 11, furthercomprising: a respective user interface device associated with each ofthe master device and the first plurality of slave devices, wherein therespective user interface device associated with each of the masterdevice and the first plurality of slave devices is configured to emit arespective audible or visual notification message that identifies when arespective one of the master device and the first plurality of slavedevices is updated in response to the master device receiving the updateto the first configuration data of the connected system.
 19. The systemof claim 11, wherein the master device and the first plurality of slavedevices form a cascade.
 20. The system of claim 11, wherein the firstone of the first plurality of slave devices is configured to communicatethe configuration message to a second plurality of slave devices thatare slave devices of the first one of the first plurality of slavedevices.